Why I want to put Wholesome back in Fantasy Stories

AuthorAppleton on October 20, 2014

When I was growing up I devoured tales of true heroism that demonstrated the growth of western society from Judeo-Christian values. King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, Pilgrim’s Progress, even mysteries like The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew. What has happened since then?

On my book touring travels I cannot tell you how often school teachers and parents were looking for wholesome fiction for their kids. Twilight was the big craze when I was on the road and some people were horrified by some of the content included in those books because they targeted Young Adult readers. I will not speak to Twilight in this post, but I do believe that authors have a responsibility to society to produce fun, wholesome fiction.

“You are what you eat,” is such a common saying. But it’s also accurate to say that “You are what you read.” If our youth are filling their minds with stories of gratuitous violence, casual sex, promiscuity, and vulgarity… what sorts of individuals would you expect them to become?

Books used to be filled with stories of chivalry, self-sacrifice, and self-discipline. Even through fiction young people can learn to be better people with stronger morals. And, very importantly, they can learn how to follow what is right instead of following the crowd. Tales of old were filled with stories of heroes and heroines who stepped back when confronted with temptation and evil. Those heroes and heroines said, “No,” and the readers said, “Wow! I vow to be like that so that I can live in good conscience with my fellow man.”

Thankfully there is a surge of this kind of fiction that is now coming. It will start with the Young Adult category and, I hope, grow into the Middle Grade and Adult fiction.

Question: What fiction books have encouraged you and made you a better person?

Dragons as Heroes in fantasy?

AuthorAppleton on September 22, 2014

Dragons are predominantly the villains in fantasy fiction. But this does not have to be the case, especially if we write from a Christian worldview!

Abino, a dragon prophet from The Sword of the Dragon series

It is interesting to take this subject from the angle of seeing it from my worldview. As a Christian author I have often encountered readers whose faces get all twisted up when I tell them that some of the dragons in my stories are heroes. “How can dragons be the good guys?” I’ve been asked. Interestingly, if you write fantasy from a Christian worldview you have a most compelling reason to create heroic dragons. In the Bible the Devil was depicted as “that old serpent” and “the dragon” because it made an effective allegory to his character. But most readers forget that Jesus was called the “lion of Judah” and Satan is referred to as the lion who “roars about seeking whom he may devour.”

So is it the species that makes a creature figure a villain in Christian-based fantasy? No, the contrary is true. For the good and the evil are considered that way based on their choices. If they are intelligent in these fictional worlds, just like people are, then whether they are good or evil is based on who they serve. Worldview is a fascinating way to explore why fantasy worlds are developed in different ways. The Christian worldview as a basis for fantasy fiction can create some of the greatest storytelling.

Question: How do you see the author’s worldview impacting the fantasy and science fiction stories you have read?

Authors: The Image Then and Now

AuthorAppleton on August 25, 2014

Books used to be detailed works of art, hand-crafted and extremely hard to come by . . .. And the authors back then were few and far between. Today books are mass-produced, and their design is frequently held back by budgetary considerations . . .. And authors are everywhere! But have we lost something of the writing art along the way?

My wife and I love watching old black and white movies. Truly the writing and the acting in many of those films is rarely matched in the contemporary film industry.

The other day we found a new “gem” of a film titled My Dear Secretary. The plot follows a woman who wants to be a writer as she becomes secretary to a renowned author. However this comedy quickly reveals that the author has lost his edge and has sunk himself into the life of the party and gambling debt. In the story everyone around the author puts up with his eccentricities as they wait for him to come up with the next great novel. In the story he never does produce another great literary work, but that seems beside the point.

Today authors are commonly expected, at minimum, to produce a new book every year. They are not given all the time they need to hide away and develop the next great book, it satisfies society that they do their best in the time allotted to them. But what if authors were to start acting more like the artists they used to be viewed as? What if they were allowed to explore the full range of their creativity without the pressure of mass-production? Would this lead to far better books that would stand out from the vast selection of mediocre works that are being published by the thousands every year?

We need to pull back from the mad rush of our swamped literary market and instead encourage the creation of original novels that are truly exceptional.

Question: Which books do you think would have benefited if the author had taken his time to complete it?